Formaldehyde Detectors are Fake: 3 Things to Know About Formaldehyde (Part 1)
Lots of companies will sell you formaldehyde detectors, but a simple test you can do at home will reveal they are fakes. Formaldehyde detectors routinely react to lots of common gases that are not formaldehyde, making the numbers basically impossible to interpret. Given that unfortunate fact, hereās what you can do to test formaldehyde in your home.Ā
Ā The Problem
Have you ever moved into a newly remodeled apartment and smelled that chemical, remodeling smell?
Ā Ā Iām very much not an expert in air pollution,Ā but I am very much a dedicated nerd. And Iāve spent the last five years of my nerd energy on researching and testing formaldehyde in China.Ā This series shares the three most important things Iāve learned.Ā
Ā Lesson 1: If you can smell it, youāve got a problem. Donāt waste time and money testing.
Ā Ā If you can smell that sort of chemical, paint, or cleaner smell, you have aĀ VOCĀ problem in your home.Ā
Although Iāve seenĀ people say that formaldehyde is colorless and odorless, the fact is it has aĀ strong smell.
Ā Ā I know from my high school dissection activity. The CDC says so too.
But why would I say you shouldnāt bother testing it? I love doing tests! I test the air in my home all the time.
Plus, Taobao has a bunch of formaldehyde testing machines for under 100 RMB. So why not?
Ā Ā āFormaldehyde detectorsā on Taobao react to lots of common gases, not just formaldehyde.
These āformaldehyde detectorsā actually react to a large group of gases, including harmful and harmless gases.Ā
If you have a tester, try a little experiment: eat an orange near the tester.Ā The detector will probably send out an alarm. Formaldehyde! You can see me doing that exact test here.
Ā Ā These formaldehyde detectors will react to lots of harmless things, like oranges, flowers, and peanut butter.
Ā Ā Last time I checked, oranges donāt have formaldehyde.
Ā Ā OK, so hereās your other option for testing: take air samples and send them to a lab for testing. Thatās OK, but it takes a lot of time andĀ money.
After buying a small army of testing machines, my recommendation is this: even though it sounds unscientific, our noses are pretty good detectors.Ā
Scientists have done studies to figure out what levels of formaldehyde human noses can detect, and they found thatĀ humans can detect really low levels.
Ā Ā How low can our noses go? The US CDC says we should be worried about formaldehyde at 0.1 PPM (2). Thatās precisely the level thatĀ normal people start to smell formaldehyde.
Ā Ā The US CDC says we should start worrying about formaldehyde at 0.1 PPM, precisely the level that most humans can start smelling it.
Bottom line: As unscientific as it sounds, our noses are quite sensitive formaldehyde detectors. Unfortunately, commercially available āformaldehyde detectorsā provide no insight into formaldehyde.
Read More:
3 Things You Need to Know About Formaldehyde
Part 1: Why formaldehyde testers are fake (and why itās actually scientific to just use your nose)
Part 2: How long it takes for formaldehyde to off-gas from new and remodeled homes
Part 3: Three data-backed ways to reduce formaldehyde and other VOCs in your home














